63% Nigerians are multidimensionally poor, says NBS
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that 63per cent or 133million persons living in Nigeria are multidimensionally poor.
This is according to a statement issued by the NBS on Thursday on the highlight of the result of the 2022 Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) Survey.
According to the report, over half of the population of Nigeria is multidimensionally poor, with multidimensional poverty higher in rural areas, where 72per cent of people are poor, compared to 42per cent of people in urban areas.
The report also revealed that the national MPI is 0.257, which means poor people in Nigeria experience just over one-quarter of all possible deprivations.
“65% of the poor (86 million people) live in the North, while 35 per cent (nearly 47 million) live in the South. Poverty levels across states vary significantly, with the incidence of multidimensional poverty ranging from a low of 27 per cent in Ondo to a high of 91 per cent in Sokoto.
“Over half of the population of Nigeria is multidimensionally poor and cooks with dung, wood, or charcoal, rather than clean energy. High deprivations also appeared nationally in sanitation, time to healthcare, food insecurity, and housing.
“In general, the incidence of monetary poverty is lower than the incidence of multidimensional poverty across most states. In Nigeria, 40.1 per cent of people were poor, based on the 2018/19 national monetary poverty line, and 63 per cent are multidimensionally poor according to the National MPI 2022.
“Multidimensional poverty is higher in rural areas, where 72 per cent of people are poor, compared to 42 per cent of people in urban areas.
“The national MPI is reported with a linked Child MPI, which provides additional information on multidimensional child poverty in Nigeria,” the report said.
It added that two-thirds (67.5 per cent) of children (0–17) are multidimensionally poor, based on the national MPI, and a little over half (51 per cent) of all poor people are children.
